Hear him roar

Tyson Meade has shied away from the spotlight for some time. It has been over a decade since his beloved alternative outfit Chainsaw Kittens went on hiatus, and Meade has mostly been living in Shanghai since, devoting his time to teaching English, guiding children and mentoring young musicians, with only the occasional performance.

But his return to Oklahoma, an album in the works and a renewed love of music has Meade eager to step back on the stage. He will do so Friday at Opolis, fronting local acts including Broncho, Stardeath and White Dwarfs, Rainbows Are Free, Depth & Current and Applied Music Program, all of which will perform their own renditions of Chainsaw Kittens classics with Meade on the microphone.

“The young bands here, I really love them,” Meade said. “I knew all these bands would do their own reinterpretations of my songs, and it kind of feels like Christmas to me. I’m excited to see what their ideas of what the songs should sound like.”

The idea came from Andy and Marian Nunez (Starlight Mints, Opolis), and it was immediately embraced by Meade. With the acts ranging from blaring punk to chilled indie and alt-metal, Meade sees himself evolving as a performer through the evening.

“I will lose myself in the song,” he said. “It will be me, but me in the context of what’s going on around me.”

And while the bands have been busy learning their choice Chainsaw Kittens cuts, there will be only one full rehearsal leading into the show, promising a wild, enthralling performance.

“I loved the idea, but I want to be almost an innocent bystander or voyeur with the whole thing,” Meade said, laughing. “We’re going to try and do one rehearsal, but there will be a lot of winging involved. It could be the most insane car crash that you’ve ever witnessed. It could just fail miserably, but that’s part of that excitement of it.”

No matter how the show goes, Meade knows it will be a reenergizing experience — a nice boost heading into the final stages of his new album due in April, which was inspired by Chinese violinist Haffijy and features contributions from Jimmy Chamberlain (ex-Smashing Pumpkins), Other Lives and more.

“I feel like I’m going to come away with a new creative energy. I’m going to be able to look at my songs in a whole new light, which for me is a blessing,” Meade said. “To have people care enough about these songs — some of which are almost 30 years old — and for them to be worth the time that these bands have put into learning them, it’s the highest compliment … and it’s going to give me a new boost. It’ll be like when they drained Keith Richards’ blood back in the ’70s and gave him new blood. Maybe I’ll feel a lot like that.”

Tyson Meade has shied away from the spotlight for some time. It has been over a decade since his beloved alternative outfit Chainsaw Kittens went on hiatus, and Meade has mostly been living in Shanghai since, devoting his time to teaching English, guiding children and mentoring young musicians, with only the occasional performance.